Avice: It's so big!
Diabolic Tracer: Hehe *blushes*
Avice: I meant the chapter, your perv!
Battle Royale On!
Elizabeth's POV
My deck was all updated with new cards and my Duel Disk was set – I was ready to go. Today was going to be the third round of the Maiami Championship for the Junior Youth Division, but for some reason Reiji called I and my brother to both be there, so it must be something serious. Avice and Oni were preparing as well, everyone wanted to be in their best shape for today, so everyone was preparing their decks. The only one that was missing was my brother, who said that there was something 'special' he had to prepare.
"Make sure to be extra careful for today." Avice warned me.
"Tell me the truth, do you expect something to happen?" I looked back at her. Warning me out of nowhere, just wasn't like my sister at all. She must be expecting something.
"Heh, you really haven't figured it out, have you?" Avice's lips dropped into a frown as she looked at me. "Think about it, if today is just the Junior Youth's third round, why would you and brother be called there as well? By Akaba Reiji no less. He probably plans to use the tournament as an excuse to declare war against the Fusion Dimension and as our seniors, it's going to be up to the older Duelists such as you and brother to help out in case things go out of control."
"Oh." That made a lot of sense actually. Still, I would rather have this conflict resolve peacefully than help declaring war against an entire Dimension. I sat down on the sofa and waited for Evan to show up while trying to communicate with my alternative personalities once again. Of course they were always around, bothering me, except when I needed to have a talk with them. Since I haven't seen any of their decks (they manifest only when one of the personalities takes over my body for some reason) I needed to discuss what type of deck each one would handle dueling against the best.
Long before any one of them replied to any of my mental screams, the door of Evan's door was kicked open and I heard his footsteps getting louder as he came into the living room. I looked up at him, he had finally chosen to change his clothes, huh? He was wearing a black leather jacket, almost the same as the old one, but this time it was much longer, reaching down to his stomach with two red lines running down the side of his sleeves and two sinister red eyes were drawn on its pockets.
Weirdly, there was some strange white matter on the shoulders, upper chest of the jacket; it didn't seem to be leather. Underneath it, he wore a light grey V-neck shirt with a red collar and several red stripes running down the sides. Finally, he had black sporting pants, which spotted the same white matter on the knees and outer thighs, as well as on the front of his black and purple sneakers. It seemed like he either didn't notice that I was looking at me, or just ignored it because he reached into his pockets and pulled two black gloves with white on the back of the fingers and the knuckles, which he then proceed to put on as well.
"Niichan looks good!" Oni gave a thumb up.
"Whew." Avice whistled and looked our brother from head to toe. "That's the secret thing you were working on in the last few days?"
"You made this?" I never knew that Evan had any knowledge about how to sew, let alone make his out clothes. I walked over and ran my hand through the front of his jacket. As I thought, the black and red parts were all leather, but the red one was much stiffer and rough on the touch. It didn't feel like anything that someone would want to make their clothes out of.
"I used one of my old pair of clothes to make this." Evan smirked and stepped away before spinning around to let me see that the upper back of the jacket was covered in the same white matter while the lower part had a strange, big, red circle with wings drawn on it.
"It certainly grabs the attention." I said, focusing my attention more to the lower part of the jacket. There were also two red belts sewed to the end of the jacket, which made them hang from behind my brother like a pair of tails. Speaking about animalistic features, this jacket also had a hood with cat ears like the previous one, but to push it one step further this time it also had a red cat head drawn on the front of the hood.
"Best part is, I didn't make this one just to look at it." I raised my head to meet my brother's eyes and raised an eyebrow. "You see, these white pieces aren't just for decoration. I used carbon fibres for these bad boys. Since I heard that it has high stiffness and low weight, it would work well as an armor without raising too much attention onto me."
I had to admit, the jacket didn't look too much out of there ordinary, and it was probably going to catch less attention that a full set of armor. "But why do you need to wear something to protect yourself? I don't think that anyone will try to stab or shot you in this world."
In response, Evan just glared at me. What? I wasn't wrong, was… Oh, I remembered what could have made him think about using additional protection. I winched just from the memories of the last two weeks.
"Since everyone is ready, we should move out now." Avice stretched out her arms and then put them behind her head. "That's unless Big Bro has something to tell us."
"Indeed I do." Evan nodded and looked over all of us. "Today we expect the Fusion Dimension to make their move. I'm not sure how exactly, but Reiji probably plans to use the Junior Youth Division's third round to lure out our enemies, so Avice will be in most danger from all of us. Another thing about Reiji is that he cares too much about this city to want to cause panic and chaos, so it's most likely that the third round will be set somewhere out of the public's eyes. In this case Leo Corporation will probably use the security cameras to show the round. Today will also be the last round of the Youth Division's final round, won't it?"
"Yes!" Oni nodded. "What must I do, niichan?"
"Just act like you don't know what's going on." Evan said and reached to tie his Wrist Dealer onto his left hand. "The Youth Division's finale will probably be used to distract people's attention in case things don't go exactly according to Reiji's plan. I want you to stay away from the rest of the audience if it's possible. Since we don't know how many soldiers Academia will send nor what places they would focus on attacking first, it's very possible that they are going to go after the stadium filled with civilians, the perfect death trap."
"What if things don't go according to this plan?" I asked. Evan was no foreteller, we shouldn't believe his hypotheses.
"It will happen exactly as I'm thinking." I shook my head at his response. "It's what Reiji's preparing for. Both Shun and Koharu know how Academia operates, so if he was wrong they would have said so earlier. Their silence during the preparation is the biggest confirmation that you could ask for. And before you go about how an army wouldn't use the same tactic twice, you're completely wrong to think that."
'It was the tactic that Academia used in order to invade the Xyz Dimension, wasn't it?' I bit my lower lip unconsciously while thinking about it. Coming out of nowhere, destroying everything in their path that was probably how Academia was able to take over the entire dimension. Since Standard is a peaceful world as well and Sora could confirm it to the enemy, there was no point to change tactics when dealing with the same type of enemy.
"Let's go now." I snapped back from my thoughts just in time to see everyone else passing me to walk out of the apartment.
Avice's POV
Ah, there we were finally! All of us that remained from the Junior Youth class were gathered on the stadium, waiting for the instructions about how today round would plays out. As I already expected, Kurosaki wasn't with the other members, so Reiji must have probably called him for something. Oh well, he wouldn't have been the only entertaining opponent from the bunch that was able to reach this part. The one Knight of Duels seemed worried since me and Ventus took out his buddies in the last round. Were they planning to get together to this round and use sheer numbers to overpower their opponents? How sad.
"Kurosaki hasn't show up, huh?" Yuzu muttered.
"Where did he go?" Yuya asked.
I just sighed and stepped more to the left to get in a distance at which I wouldn't have to listen to their stupid chattered. Brother, sister, Levant, Koharu and Kurosaki were all going to show up once the time came, so I had no need to worry what was going to happen next. It was a genius move on Reiji's part to put his best duelists as backup. This way, the weaklings would be exterminated first while the strong ones won't have too much of a problem fighting against Academia.
"Hey there!" I peaked up a little and saw a boy with curly red hair. He was wearing a long-sleeved blue collared shirt with a purple bow tie around his neck, and an orange jacket on top of that missing the right sleeve – what a weird way to dress up.
"Huh? Are you talking to me?" I asked and he nodded eagerly.
"You are from You Show as well, aren't you?" I held back from rolling my eyes after hearing the name of that damn school being spoken out with so much energy. "I'm a fan of Yusho Sakaki's Dueling as well!"
"Oh?" Well at least we was following after the footsteps of the better Sakaki. "That's nice. Maybe we could have an entertaining duel if he have to face each other."
"Sure! I'll show you my Entertainment Dueling!" This time, I sighed in defeat. When I meant an entertaining duel, I didn't mean an Entertainment Dueling, but maybe this guy would show a better performance that our clown over there.
"The name is Dennis by the way." The boy reached out for a handshake. "Dennis McField."
"Avice Greyson." I replied and accepted the handshake. The round hasn't begun yet and I already made a friend, sort of? Maybe this wasn't going to be as bad as I expected.
"Everyone, thank you for waiting!" Ah, entertainment Hitler showed up! "Right now, a Battle Royale between these sixteen Junior Youth competitors will take place!"
Everyone else seemed to gasp at this, but I just hid my smirk. My brother was right as always! Reiji was going to be using this third round to begin his war against Academia and what better way to enter a war of dueling than through a Battle Royale?
"Now then, let's explain the rules!" the announcer continued. "The match will begin promptly at noon! At that time Action Cards will be spread out! And here is the important part! There are Pendulum Cards from Leo Corporation hidden in the city! The competitors must find at least two of them to Duel!"
Searching for Pendulum Cards through the City? It matched another one of my brother's predictions – the third round wasn't going to take place in front of everyone. Using the Pendulum Cards as an excuse, Reiji just got himself the top sixteen Junior Youth duelists to guard the city against Academia's forces. However, it disappointed me that people would need those annoying Pendulum Cards in order to duel. Reiji is putting too much importance in this weak summoning method.
"The matches will be held under the Ante Rule with the Pendulum Cards included!" the announcer keep going, ignoring the shock and confusion of everyone else. The winner then takes the amount of Pendulum Cards bet by the loser and acquires them as their own! The time limit is twenty-four hours! Also, the city will be split into four areas based on the fields in the Field Spell: Wonder Quartet! Competitors are free to battle in any of those four areas! The starting time is almost upon us! All entrants please prepare your Duel Disks!"
I clenched my fist and pushed forward, the blade of my Duel Disk activating. After than I swung it and put it in front of my chest, ready to start kicking asses! The Battle Royale mode was automatically activated and all I had to do was wait for the time to come while a part of the stadium elevated to open up a gate.
"Now then, let's get this started!" Nice exclaimed. "Duelists locked in battle! Kicking against the earth and dancing in the air alongside their monsters! They storm through the field! Behold! This is the newest and greatest evolution of dueling! Action-"
"Duel!" We all shouted in unison and ran toward the gate. I could hear the sound of Action Cards getting scared while trying to focus on just the path that was in front of me. Brother, make sure to see this, I will definitely make you proud with my dueling!
Elizabeth's POV
I watched through the window of Leo Corporation's tower as the entire city was converted into an Action Field. Or would it be more exact to call it a battlefield? My brother walked next to me and activated his Duel Disk, the blade coming to live to form a scythe in front of his hand. Like death itself, Evan and Avice probably didn't share my worries about all those people who were going to face Academia. What was I saying? It wasn't 'probably', they definitely didn't feel anything.
"Reiji will keep his royal dogs on a strap until Academia shows its face." Evan commented. "If we move out now we'll be able to buy ourselves some time."
"Time for what?" I gritted my teeth and grabbed my brother's shoulder, pulling him toward me. "What are you plotting this time!?"
"Just follow me and you will get everything." My brother grabbed my hand, his hold was much stronger than mine and I even began to feel pain in my hand. "I can't let those amateurs to have all of the fun. I'm sure that Academia won't send just regular troops, at least one officer would have to show up and I want to be the one to capture them for a few questions before…"
"Before what?"
"Before… I sent them to Reiji for interrogation." I said nothing to that, but it was clear as a day to me that he was lying about his intentions.
I hated it so much! Always being shoved to the side, my warnings and request being ignored by Evan and Avice who would go out to do their own thing no matter how much I tried to protest. Yes, I loved them because I was their sister - it was only natural – but I also hated them for the kind of people that they turned out to be. I wanted to show them that they couldn't take me for a fool, to teach them a lesson, but how? To slap Evan across the face? I already did that once and I'm still regretting that I was too weak to control myself and ended up hurting someone I cared a lot about.
"Duel me!" I activated my Duel Disk and pointed the blade at my brother.
"Excuse me?" Of course, he was dumbfound about it. I haven't dueled against him in a long while and the only one of my siblings I had real experience against in this world was Avice, but…
"You heard me! I challenge you to a duel." I repeated, but I couldn't withstand watching him in the eyes. "You think of yourself as the strongest, believe that everything is allowed to you just because you are skilled, so I want to show you that I'm strong as well!"
"If you are willing to stand in my way, don't expect any mercy from my side." I felt a chill go down my spine. His sentence, it was so cold and serious, it made me actually feel scared from my own brother.
"I won't lose." I warned him. Despite the fear, I had to stand my ground and face against him!
My brother sighed and stepped past me. "Very well, but we will have the duel outside. Somewhere without cameras because I don't want to hear Reiji's complaining."
I nodded and followed after him. Although victory was never my goal when I played, this time defeat was unacceptable! I had to win this duel not just because I wanted my brother to see how strong I was on my own, but to also unlock his heart and fulfil my duty as his family. I wanted to help him find a real reason to keep living that wasn't an obsession over always winning.
Avice's POV
I whistled to myself while walking through the empty city. There was no one else around, the place was big so it wasn't likely for me to run into another participant and even if I did, I haven't collected any Pendulum Cards yet. Although… Maybe I should try to play this silly game for a bit until the real fun begins? Yes, I could go around and beat all the others while waiting for Academia to show up.
"Hey!" Suddenly, completely out of nowhere, Ventus landed in front of me.
"Sweet Slifer!" I yelled and took a step back. "My heart almost jumped out of my chest because of you, jackass!"
"Sorry!" He immediately put his hands together and bowed. "I wasn't trying to scare you."
"Yeah, whatever." He must be lying! There was no way that someone would have thought to jump right in front of someone's nose without any malicious intent behind their choice. "Why are you here anyway?"
"A duel." Ventus exclaimed and pulled two Pendulum Cards out of his pocket before pointing at them. "I already got a pair!"
"I got zero yet." I replied, dismissing the ninja. "You will have to look for an opponent somewhere else."
"That's a letdown." Well, excuse me! "I was hoping to duel against one of you siblings sometime, but it seems that this won't happen today."
"Life sucks." I shrugged. Although it would be funny to smash his face in the concrete, he was a Lancer so I had no interest in dueling a possible puppet. "Do you know where I could find Pendulum Cards by a chance?"
"Yes! There is one right onto that tree!" Ventus nodded and pointed toward the object he was talking about. Yes, I could faintly see a card behind the leaves.
Just then, some platforms began to slide from the buildings around us and a light covered everything. Once it all died down, we were standing in the middle of a frozen wasteland! Not just that, but the tree was also covered in ice!
"Bad luck." I gritted my teeth while Ventus just shrugged it off. "You should try finding another card."
"I know that." Calm down Avice. Take deep breaths, done let such a small thing anger you too much!
"Hey, doesn't the girl look like Yuzu a little?" Huh?
I raised my head and looked around, noticing someone who was slowly stepping toward us. She had blue hair tied into a ponytail and her face looked a lot like Yuzu's indeed. A counterpart possible? She was also wearing a red uniform that reminded me a lot of the Slifer Red jacket from GX. Wait. GX, Judai Yuki, Fusion Summoning, a girl that looks like Yuzu and wears a Slifer Red uniform, you already reached the same conclusion that I just did, didn't you?
"Hey, Ventus." I whispered.
"Yes?" He whispered back.
"I have the gut feeling that Academia is starting to show up already." I replied. "Why don't you go search the rest of the city? Help anyone who gets in trouble while I deal with our little copycat here?"
"Are you sure?" I glared back at him. What did me mean if I'm sure!? "Ok, ok! I'll let you take care of this one."
With that said, the ninja jumped onto a huge block of ice and then toward the next one and so on, he quickly disappeared from my view. Once he was gone, I began to slowly walk toward the girl while she moved toward me at the same pace. I didn't have high expectation from her, but hopefully she would be able to entertain me for just a bit.
"Are you from Academia?" I asked once she was close enough to hear me.
"So, you are a Xyz Duelist, aren't you?" Xyz Duelist? She must be trying to hunt down the survivors of Xyz then, which means that she isn't strong enough to face an enemy her group hasn't beaten before – such a disappointment.
"It seems like you got me." I raised my hands. "I guess we will be dueling now, won't we?"
"I won't let any Xyz Duelist to get away from me!" the girl declared and activated her own Duel Disk. It was shaped like a shield with a blue blade in the form of a sword.
"Good, good!" I couldn't help it! My smile went wider and I raised my Duel Disk to show that I'm ready. I was going to teach this worm how powerful and dangerous duelists exist out there! "I haven't had the chance to beat any of you scum in a while, so you will be my first victim for today, ok?"
"I'm a Duelist taught by Academia!" the girl exclaimed. "I won't lose to the same kind that my comrades already defeated once!"
"Duel!"
『Serena LP: 4000 Hand: 5 (VS) Avice LP: 4000 Hand: 5』
"My turn!" The Yuzu look-alike quickly picked a card from her hand. "I activate the Spell Card: Polymerization! Through its effect, I can fuse together Lunalight White Rabbit and Lunalight Purple Butterfly!" Two female monsters appeared behind the girl and fell into a multi-colored vortex.
"The lively white rabbit illuminated by moonlight! Butterfly with violet poison! Spiral into the moon's gravity and become a new power! Fusion Summon! Come to me! Beautiful beast that dances in the moonlight! Lunalight Cat Dancer (Lv.7, ATK: 2400)!"
Out of the vortex jumped a purple skinned neko wearing a blue dress that looked like that of a dancer (duh, the monster's name had dancer in it) and was holding two daggers, so, that escalated quickly.
"I will then set a card face-down and end my turn." Hmm, that's it?
I tapped my Duel Disk and zoomed onto the Fusion Monster to see its effect. Apparently this Cat Dancer had the ability to attack all monsters twice by releasing another monster. To summon a monster with such a simple and straightforward effect meant that her deck didn't have much variation. It must be the simplest of simplest Beatdown tactics out there.
"Are you going to take your turn?" the girl asked me. She seemed to be getting annoyed, must be the serious type that doesn't take any fooling around.
"Don't worry, I was just going to do that." I stated and looked around. "But before I do, I should tell you that right now we are standing on an Action Field, so there must be Action Cards around here."
"Action Cards?" she looked at me skeptically.
"Cards scattered around the field to support the duelists during duels. To use one you just need to grab it and then you can activate it whenever you see fit." I explained to her. Of course, it might look stupid to be telling her about Action Cards and give her that advantage, but it would be too boring to just beat her without giving her a chance to crawl for her life.
"Why would you tell me that?" she asked me again. "Do you think I'm stupid enough to fall for your words?"
"Believe whatever you want." I shrugged, not really caring what this lookalike thought. "I'm just giving you a fair chance to fight back."
"I don't need advices from a Xyz Remnant!" the lookalike shouted at me.
'But you are still going to listen to it, won't you?' I thought. "It's my turn, draw!"
『Turn 2 [Avice] LP: 4000, Hand: 6』
I looked at my hand, with the cards that I had at the moment I would be able to set up a few Extra Deck summons for the turn, probably would be best to use them for Synchro and Transformation, but it would get much more interesting if I proved her by Xyz Summoning. After all, this girl looked like she had some fire and it's easy to get under her skin, so a Xyz Summon would probably make her want to give her all. Not that she wasn't going to go all out if I used anything else, I could tell by that cold stare of hers that she was willing to win by any method available. So bold from her, so sad that I would have to ruin that cute face.
"I will start by Normal Summoning Astral Angel Einplus (Lv.1, ATK: 200)!" The little triangle flew in front of me causing the lookalike to raise an eyebrow.
"A Tuner monster? Are you a Synchro user?" So it appears that she was familiar with Synchro as well.
"I'm much more than that." I smirked and took another card from my hand. "I activate the Spell Card – Photon Lead to Special Summon a Level Four or lower LIGHT monster from my hand, so come out, Astral Angel Digital (Lv.2, ATK: 200)." The little disk appeared next to the other simple figure on my field. "Next, I activate Digital's effect! When its Special Summoned, I can call out two more Digitals from my deck!"
"Are you going for a Level Seven Synchro?" Yuzu's lookalike asked me.
"Oh, I don't have such a monster in my Extra Deck." I shook my finger. "Brute strength is something used only by commons, I prefer a much more elegant style of dueling that puts grace above big numbers. But before that, there is one last preparation that I need to make, so I activate the Spell Card – Star Duplicate! With it, I target Digital and Special Summon an Astral Angel with the same level from my deck, so say hello to Astral Angel Star Frieden (Lv.2, ATK: 600)!"
Star Duplicate (Spell) Normal
Target 1 LIGHT monster you control: Special Summon 1 "Astral Angel" monster from deck with the same Level, but its effects are negated. If this card is in your Graveyard, except during the turn it was sent there from the field, you can banish this card: Add 1 Level 4 or lower "Astral Angel" monster from your deck to the hand.
A halo appeared above my field and the humanoid monster made of cosmic energy fell through it, landing next to the rest of my monsters.
"Let's get this started now!" All of the conditions were already met! "I Overlay my three Level Two Astral Angel Digital!"
My three monsters turned into yellow streams of energy. They shot into the air as the galaxy portal opened in the sky and then dived in it.
"The heavenly dragon, break through the fabrics of space and annihilate the unholy that stands in your sight! Xyz Summon! Rank Two! Astral Angel Dragolight (RANK: 2, ATK: 1000)!"
"So that's your Xyz monster?" The lookalike remarked. "I expected more than this."
"My dueling is just starting." I retorted. She was going to witness my true strength in just a bit… "To finish this, I'm going to tune my Level Two Astral Angel Star Frieden to my Astral Angel Einplus!" My triangle turned into a Synchro ring and surrounded Star Frieden who turned into two spheres of light.
"The universe is always expanding! Activate, the hunter able to detect its prey from across the stars! Synchro Summon! Level Three! Astral Angel Bewegungsmelder!"
A slim white jet with black wings and underbelly flew through the pillar of light. Its wings turned downward and turned into hands with three fingers at the ends. The upper part of its body slid forward creating a visor over the monster's pink eyes (which were located on its nose) while exposing its core, which was on the top. Its tail turned upside down and the rudder split into two parts that formed small legs. A blue aura surrounded it to show that I put the monster in Defense Position.
Astral Angel Bewegungsmelder
Level: 3/Attribute: LIGHT/Type: Machine/Synchro/Effect
ATK: 600/DEF: 1700
1 Tuner + 1 or more non-Tuner monsters
Effect: If this card is Synchro Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 "Astral Angel" Tuner from your hand or Banished Zone in Defense Position. Once per turn: You can target 1 face-up monster your opponent controls; its ATK becomes 0, and if it does, its effects are negated. These changes last until the end of this turn. If the monster targeted by this effect is destroyed this turn, inflict damage to your opponent equal to half its original ATK.
"Synchro as well?" the girl narrowed her eyes. "Don't tell me that they already took a side in the war."
"I don't know the answer to that, so I won't tell you anything." Sheesh, was war the only thing that this one could think about. I could attack with Dragolight and use its effect to return the Fusion back into her Extra Deck, but I should save my Xyz Materials for her turn. "Now check out my! I activate Bewegungsmelder's effect! Once per turn, I can target one of your monsters and reduce its attack to zero, as well as negate its effects. You got only one monster anyways, so here it goes! Area Stun!"
My Synchro flew over the lookalike's fusion and dropped a pink cube of energy that unleashed a stream of electricity which paralyzed the monster.
Lunalight Cat Dancer, ATK: 2400 → 0
"You little..." She gritted her teeth, apparently trying to hold back from insulting me. How kindly from her.
"Now battle! I attack your Lunalight Cat Dancer with Astral Angel Dragolight. Space Shatter!"
My dragon roared and flew into the sky before firing a barrage of beams down onto the Fusion Monster, destroying it. The Yuzu lookalike screamed and took a few steps back, probably hurt from the extreme heat of my monster's beams.
『Serena LP: 4000 - 1000 → 3000』
"Is that the best you got?" She muttered and forced herself to look up at me. "I didn't even feel that."
"You did not?" I tilted my head to the side; this was going to be fun then. "Well, then I'm not sure if you are going to feel this one. When the monster targeted by Bewegungsmelder is destroyed, you take half of its original attack points as damage. If I remember correctly, that Cat Dancer of yours got twenty-four hundred attack, so half of that will be twelve hundred points of damage."
This time, the duplicate's eyes widened and she raised her head just in time to see my Bewegungsmelder dropping another 'gift' that blew up in her face, launching her body backward. Actually, even I was impressed by how far she got and… Oh, what's this? Her body smashed through the ice that was covering the Pendulum Card I wanted to take, nice.
『Serena LP: 3000 - 1200 → 1800』
"Now I see why Academia invades other dimensions. Beating people to a pulp is actually a lot of fun." I smiled and walked toward the girl. "Come on, don't tell me that you already passed out, I was just warming up, you know?"
No response. She was lying flat on the ground like some doll, it was so boring to watch her. Still, I kept my eyes on her just in case while I moved forward and took the Pendulum Card that she was so kind to get out of the ice for me. Of course, I wasn't sure if rules allowed you to put Pendulum Cards into your deck during an ongoing duel, so I put it into my pocket for the time being. Actually, the rules never mentioned that I need to hold those cards in my deck in the first place…
"Ugh." The lookalike finally groaned and her body began to slowly lift itself from the snow.
"Did you have your beauty sleep?" I smirked and jumped onto Dragolight's back, patting the monster on the head. "Are you ready to get serious now, or will you do the smart thing and admit defeat?"
"Nonsense!" The girl shouted and raised back onto her feet, holding out her Duel Disk. "If I forfeit this duel, the Professor will never acknowledge my abilities! You got a lucky shot just now, but that's going to change soon! I have already activated my trap, Lunalight Reincarnation Dance! When you destroyed my Cat Dancer, this card allowed me to add two new Lunalight monsters from the deck to my hand."
"Oh?" That was interesting. "Whelp, there's not much else I can do now, so I'm just going to end my turn. But before I beat your sorry ass, why don't you tell me your name?"
"As if I have the need to be acknowledged by the likes of you." I groaned at her response.
"Honestly, with that tsundere behavior of yours and your short temper, it feels like I'm talking with every generic lead girl from a harem anime, ever." I guess that's what she was made for, to be the weeb's idol. "I bet that in my world people are currently reading fanfics about you being their girlfriend or something."
"I got no idea what you said, but if it's not about this duel, I don't care!" And of course, she has only one single thing on her mind like all those anime girls I mentioned.
"If I was sure that you weren't going to be disgusted by the idea, I would have already kissed you like how a boy kisses a girl." What? I had to be honest with her about that.
"Ewww!" A reaction of disgust – just like I predicted.
Elizabeth's POV
I followed after Evan as he leadeth me into the forest area. No one else has come here and the trees were thick enough to hide us from the cameras for the most part. He really thought a lot about how to make our duel a secret one, didn't he?
"You are at a huge disadvantage." Hema appeared beside me. "I call feel it, the duelist aura that comes from your brother isn't an ordinary one, his skills are on a completely different league from yours."
'Gee, thanks.' I rolled my eyes. 'And where the heck were you when I tried to contact the three of you earlier today?'
"You called for us?" Yuki appeared confused. "That's strange, we didn't hear your voice. Actually, we were in a deep slumber until now. I'm not sure what was up with that, but now that all of us are here, we can help you out in this duel!"
'No, I'm going to fight him on my own!' I exclaimed. 'This is something personal between me and my brother, outsides shouldn't interfere.'
"Technically, as a part of your mind, we are his sisters as well." Really Hema?! Right now you brought that up? "But I see that you are determined to fight with your own strength, so we are going to sit to the side and watch as you requested."
"Aww, but I wanted to duel as well!" I heard Sunny whining from inside my head.
"Here is a good spot." I turned back to Evan after he said something. My brother was standing in a medium-sized opening between the trees, enough for a duel to take place. "Are you ready for this?"
"I already answered that." I replied and raised my Duel Disk. "Since Dueling and winning are the only things you know, I will talk to you through that. This time, you are the one who's about to lose, brother."
"I gave you a last warning, this won't be the same as our duels from when we were children." My brother raised his own Duel Disk as well. "If you have the courage to challenge me, I will throw everything that I got toward you."
"I wouldn't have it any other way." It wouldn't really be a victory for me if he held back in this duel. "How did they say it back in the anime? Ah, yes! It's time to duel!"
『Evan LP: 4000 Hand: 5 (VS) Elizabeth LP: 4000 Hand: 5』
"I'm going to take the first turn!" I exclaimed and scanned through my hand. There were some very good cards, I should be able to Xyz Summon this turn, but it would be better to hold back from doing so on my first turn. "I'm going to set one monster and two facedown cards. With this my turn is over!"
I haven't dueled a lot, so I didn't have that much experience. However, I have seen Evan duel several times already. I knew how his early turns usually went and the type of monsters he would call out in a situation like this one. So, I was far more prepared for this match than him!
"A defensive move? Smart, but I will get rid of it in an instant! My turn. Draw!" I prepared myself for what he was going to summon this turn.
『Turn 2 [Evan] LP: 4000, Hand: 6』
"I'm going to Normal Summon ChronoDevil Unknollow (Lv.1, ATK: 0) and through its effect I'm going to Special Summon a Level Six or lower DARK monster from my hand. I choose ChronoDevil Time Psycher (Lv.3, ATK: 300)!"
I just watched as two of my brother's monster appeared on the field at almost the same time. That was the worst duo of monsters that I could have to face on his first turn.
"Due to Time Psycher's effect, I get to draw a card for every ChronoDevil that was on my field when I Special Summon him, so that's two cards." He was back at holding six cards in his hand! "Next, Unknollow's effect copies the level of the monster summoned by its effect, so raised into a level three!"
The creature made of black matter changed its shape and turned into a copy of Time Psycher as its Level changed accordingly.
ChronoDevil Unknollow, Lv.1 → 3
"Let's bring out one of my favorites!" Here it was, just the monster that I expected him to summon in this situation. "I overlay my Level ThreeChronoDevil Unknollow and ChronoDevil Time Psycher."
The galaxy portal opened in front of my brother and his two monsters flew into it.
"Knight lost in the stream of time, awake from your eternal slumber and strike down whoever oppose your master! Shine forth from the legends! Xyz Summon! Rank Three! ChronoDevil Void Lancer (RANK: 3, ATK: 1800)!"
"I activate Void Lancer's effect! By detaching both of its Xyz Materials, I'm going to prevent you from activating those set cards on your field. Voided Zone!" Evan's Xyz Monster absorbed the materials into its spear and two clock gears appeared over my set cards, turning them grey. "Now to battle! I attack your set monster with Void Lancer!"
I winched as Void Lancer's spear pierced through my monster and Oracle Sister of Blacksmith – Aiz cried out before fading away.
Oracle Sister of Blacksmith – Aiz
Level: 3/Attribute: EARTH/Type: Spellcaster/Effect
ATK: 1400/DEF: 600
Effect: If this card is Special Summoned while your LP is lower than your opponent's: You can target 1 "Ancient Artifact" Equip Spell in your Graveyard; equip it to an appropriate target on the field. Once per turn: If an Equip Spell is activated while this card is face-up on the field; you can destroy 1 card.
"A low defense monster? So you were trusting your back row for protection, weren't you?" I didn't respond to my brother's question. He already fell into my trap. "I'm going to take a page from your back and set two cards before calling it a turn."
"No one else was able to defeat you in this world." I muttered and looked over my brother. "Your strategies, they always follow the same basic ideas and become predictable, yet that was never a hindrance for you." I put my fist against my chest. "I saw them all. Although I never fought a strong opponent in this world, I saw all of the pain that you went through in order to protect me. To protect Avice. I'll never forget your plays, the monsters that you summoned, the cards that you activated, the combos that you pulled out."
"Hmm, so it's a complete opposite to our relationship, huh?" I looked at my brother on confusion when he said that. "I was able to understand your feelings, Eli. I knew when you were sad, when you were happy. Even if there were times when I couldn't understand your reactions, I believed that they were justified. I know that if you are hating me right now, it's probably justified."
"Brother…" Why? If he understood how I feel watching him doing all those things, why did he never try to stop himself? "If you understand my heart, why do you keep hurting it this way!?"
"Because you and I are completely different." That explanation made no sense! "There's just one thing I couldn't understand. Back in our world, you were always so competitive, trying to get first place on every school project, always having good marks and training all sort of sports. Yet here, you just gave up on that, you gave up on a part of yourself for what? To become friend with You Show?"
"For me, this world is nothing but fake." I admitted. "That's why I'm willing to give up on my past habits. What I did in our world, in the world that matters to me, they are there, not here. There's no point wasting my energy, in fact, ever since we came here and I met with Yuya and Yuzu, I learned that being surrounded by friends and people you care and love is much more important."
My brother just chuckled at my answer. "Your answer to my question is also the answer to your previous question. The reason I keep hurting your heart is because our understandings and personal believes are far too different to be able to coexist with one another. For you this world was a fake one so there was no point in putting effort into your actions, but for me, it's the humans that are the fake ones!"
"You…" I put a hand over my mouth. Did my brother really hate humanity that much? "Does that make us fake as well? Do you think that I'm a fake that could easily be replaced? No, don't answer my question! I will find the answer myself through this duel! My turn!"
『Turn 3 [Elizabeth] LP: 4000, Hand: 3』
I looked at the card that I just drew and then back to the field. It was just as I predicted, my brother used his Rank 3 to seal away my set cards. The cards that he put facedown are probably both trap cards, most likely Critical Overload and Time Shift. If I avoided attacking into ChronoDevil Void Lancer I should be fine!
"First off, I'm going to activate the Spell Card, Mana Recharge! With it, I destroy my two set cards to draw a number of cards from my deck equal to the number that got destroyed plus one!" My two set cards shattered while I added three new cards to my hand.
Mana Recharge (Spell) Normal
Destroy any number of other Spell/Trap Cards you control; draw a number of cards from your Deck up to the number of cards destroyed by this effect +1. During your Standby Phase, you can banish this card from your Graveyard: Both player must send the top five cards of their deck to the Graveyard, then they can draw 1 card.
"I Normal Summon Oracle Sister of Spirits – Ein (Lv.4, ATK: 1000)!" the green-haired spellcaster flew down onto my field and winked. "Next, Ein's effect lets me Special Summon another spellcaster straight from my deck, but its effects are going to be negated! Show yourself, Oracle Sister of Heart – Jade (Lv.4, ATK: 1500)!"
Ein aimed her sword forward and pulled the trigger, firing a magical bullet that transformed into a huge gate through which my second magician flew and landed next to the first, smiling at her.
"Now I overlay my two monsters!" I continued and the portal appeared above my head, absorbing my two monsters inside of itself.
"Magicians with various tricks! Gather right here and bring the flames of life! Xyz Summon! Rank 4! Magician dancing through the flames! Oracle Sister of Flames – Miranda (RANK.4, ATK: 2000)!"
The portal exploded and through the flames flew my new magician. She swung her swords, cutting through the flames that surrounded her and then glared at my brother and his own monster. If I was correct and one of his set cards was Time Shift, I would need to find a way to attack my brother without attacking his monster first, which is exactly what Miranda was best suited for!
"I activate Miranda's effect! I use one of her Xyz Materials to let my monster attack you directly this turn! Miranda's Ritual!" One of my monster's overlay units flew in front of her and she cut it with her swords, absorbing its essence.
"So you plan to use Miranda's effect to avoid dealing with my set cards?" My brother asked me.
"Attack my brother directly!" I ordered Miranda and she crossed her swords, a flame lit up between the blades and then flew toward my brother. I got him!
"In order for a Duelist to improve, their deck must evolve as well." Evan said and clicked his fingers, causing both of his set cards to flip. Those cards, they are… "I activate my trap, Magic Cylinder to negate your attack and inflict damage to you equal to Miranda's attack points. Then, I chain my second trap - Enchanted Javelin - to gain Life Points equal to Miranda's attack power!"
Two cylinders appeared in front of my brother and the one on the left absorbed my fireball. At the same time a strange looking spear appeared above his head and created a green aura that raised Evan's Life Points. At the same time, the cylinder on the right fired the fireball and it fell in front of me, blowing up. I covered my face with both hands and coughed from the smoke.
『Evan LP: 4000 + 2000 → 6000』
『Elizabeth LP: 4000 - 2000 → 2000』
"You should never expect that your opponent will play the exact same way in all of their duels." My brother put a hand on his hips. "I might not know your deck as good as you know mine, but I figured out that you would be wary of Time Shift and use Miranda to deal damage while avoiding attacks against my ChronoDevils. If you were more careful, you weren't going to fall for this obvious bait."
"You always think two steps ahead, don't you?" I looked down at the ground and clenched my fist. I couldn't make plans as far into the future as him, but I didn't need to. "Truth is, I already knew that you weren't going to use the same cards all the time. Since you are someone who always tries to improve, you weren't going to keep using the exact same cards all the time. That's why I let you waste Void Lancer's effect while I set up my Graveyard for this counter attack! I activate the effect of Blessed Mirror of Oracle Sister from my Graveyard! By banishing it, I can revive an Oracle Sister whose attack is less than the damage I just took!"
"The card that you destroyed!?" My brother exclaimed.
Blessed Mirror of Oracle Sister (Trap) Normal
When your opponent declares a direct attack, you can target that monster: Negate the attack, and if you do, Special Summon 1 "Mirror Fragment Token" (Spellcaster-Type/LIGHT/Level ?/ATK ?/DEF ?). (When Summoned, its Level, ATK and DEF become equal to the original Level, ATK and DEF of that target.) If you take battle or effect damage while this card is in your Graveyard, you can banish this card to target 1 "Oracle Sister" in your Graveyard with ATK that is less or equal to the damage you took: Special Summon that target, and if you do, gain LP equal to its original ATK.
A large golden mirror appeared on the field showing a reflection ofOracle Sister of Blacksmith – Aiz. The new spellcaster had a tanned skin with short blonde hair and aqua eyes. She was wearing a dark brown magician robe over light black armor that covered her chest and shoulders. Simple baggy shorts covered the lower side of her body and boots made of the same black metal served as her footwear. The spellcaster had several yellow tattoos covering her cheeks, neck, arm and legs and in her right hand she held a black battle hammer with golden wings printed on its left side.
Suddenly, the image inside the mirror began to move and then it stepped out of it before turning around to point her hammer at me. I felt a warm sensation through my body and my strength returned a little bit along with my Life Points.
『Elizabeth LP: 4000 + 1400 → 3400』
"Next, I activate Aiz's effect!" I continued and pointed at the ground. "When she is Special Summoned while my Life Points are less than yours, I can activate one Ancient Artifact Equip Spell directly from my Graveyard! I activate Ancient Artifact – Terra Justice!"
Aiz smiled at me and raised her hammer before slamming it down onto the ground, opening a portal toward the Graveyard. A small wooden wand with yellow, orange and red leaves covering the top. The swords held by Miranda disappeared and she grabbed the new magical weapon.
Ancient Artifact – Terra Justice (Spell) Equip
Equip only to a Spellcaster-type monster. It gains 600 ATK and can attack twice during each Battle Phase. Once per turn: If the monster equipped with this card inflicts damage to your opponent, you can add 1 "Ancient Artifact" from your deck to the hand, except for "Ancient Artifact – Terra Justice". If your LP are less than your opponent, you can add 1 Level 6 or lower Spellcaster-type monster instead.
"You predicted this, didn't you?" My brother asked and his lips raised a little to form a smile. "I was played for a fool."
"When an Ancient Artifact equip spell is activated while Aiz's on my field, I can destroy a card that you control. Disappear, ChronoDevil Void Lancer!" My monster swung her hammer and then threw it at Void Lancer, smashing the monster's head.
"Even if you do this, due to Miranda's effect, monsters only than her can't attack on the turn you tried to land a direct attack." My brother pointed out. So at least he has been paying attention to my early duels, huh?
"Terra Justice's effect, increases the equipped monster's attack power by six hundred and lets her attack again." My monster positioned the wand in front of herself and mana floated out of the artifact, boosting her flames.
Oracle Sister of Flames – Miranda, ATK: 2000 + 600 → 2600
"Now go, attack my brother directly!" My monster swung her wand and several fireballs formed above her head, after which they all launched forward and landed in front of my brother, throwing him back.
"Aaaarrrrgggghhhhhhhh!" My brother screamed, momentarily burying his foots into the dirt to remain standing.
『Evan LP: 6000 - 2600 → 3400』
"Your Life Points are now even!" Yuki exclaimed. "Although you weren't able to gain the lead this turn, you equalized the odds and clear out his field while keeping yours full."
"That's her determination to win." Hema commented as well and looked at me. "You were right that it should be you to duel him and not one of us because even if our skills are superior, your knowledge and determination are much more important for this duel."
"I activate Terra Justice's effect. When the monster equipped with it inflicts damage to you, I can add another Ancient Artifact from my deck to the hand" I said and took a card from my hand before showing it to my brother. "I add Ancient Artifact – Crown of Herbs."
Ancient Artifact – Crown of Herbs (Spell) Equip
Activate this card by targeting 1 Spellcaster-type monster in your GY; Special Summon it and equip it with this card. When this card leaves the field, destroy the equipped monster. All damage you take is halved. Once per turn: If you gained LP while this card was on the field; draw 1 card.
"Finally, I'm going to activate the Continuous Spell: Natural Harmony of Oracle Sisters!" I played a card that showed several your magician girls walking through a forest while laughing and smiling. In that instant, the trees that were around us suddenly began to move and their branches formed a tower behind us.
Natural Harmony of Oracle Sisters (Spell) Continuous
Once per turn: You can gain 400 LP for each Spellcaster-Type monster you control. Once per turn: You can target 1 face-up monster on the field and declare 1 Attribute (EARTH, WATER, FIRE, or WIND); the targeted monster becomes the declared Attribute until the end of this turn. If your LP is higher than your opponent, you can pay 1000 LP: Add 1 "Oracle Sister" card, or 1 Level 6 Spellcaster-Type monster from your deck to the hand.
"I activate Natural Harmony's effect." I gestured forward and my monsters waved. "Once per turn, I can gain four hundred Life Points for each of my spellcasters that are on the field."
『Elizabeth LP: 3400 + 800 → 4200』
"Next, I activate Natural Harmony's second effect to pay a thousand Life Points and add one Oracle Sister card to my hand."
『Elizabeth LP: 4200 - 1000 → 3200』
Making a comeback from his current position would be easy for my brother, I had to act carefully. I looked through the cards that I could choose from and picked one. "I add Oracle Sister of Reinforcements – Lein and end my turn!"
"Preparing for the next turn, are we?" My brother rubbed his shoulder. "Taking damage, healing and then repeat. This is the natural circle of life that your deck represents, sis. But how long could live exist compared to the destructive force of time? How long would the memory remain until it crumbles into dust?"
"I… got no idea what you are talking about." I admitted.
"I will show you then." Evan replied and put a hand on top of his deck. "It's my turn!"
『Turn 4 [Evan] LP: 3400, Hand: 5』
Avice's POV
"I won't take any more of this foolishness!" the Yuzu lookalike cried out and drew her next card. "My turn!"
『Turn 3 [Serena] LP: 1800, Hand: 4』
"First, I'm going to activate the Spell: Fusion Recovery to add Lunalight Purple Butterfly and Polymerization back to my hand!" the two cards slide out of the copy's deck and she took them. "I won't a Xyz Remnant to best me! Come out, Lunalight Kaleido Chick (Lv.4, ATK: 1400)."
A girl in yellow clothes jumped onto the field and bowed.
"Kaleido Chick's effect activates! Once per turn, I can send a Lunalight monster from my Deck or Extra Deck to the Graveyard and give Kaleido Chick its name! I choose to send Lunalight Panther Dancer from my Extra Deck." The yellow girl's body suddenly changed and she transformed into a grown up woman with tanned skin, wearing a dark blue and pink dancer dress. "Next, I activate Polymerization to fuse together Lunalight Panther Dancer on my field with the Lunalight Purple Butterfly and Lunalight Black Sheep!"
Two more girls, the one in the purple butterfly outfit and another one wearing a butler outfit appeared beside Panther Dancer and all three of then fell into a vortex of multiple colors while the Yuzu lookalike cupped her hands together and began to chant.
"Elegant beast dancing on the moonlit wilderness! The beast lurking in jet-black dress! The butterfly that wields violet poison! Swarm in a vortex of the moon's gravity and revive with a new power! Fusion Summon! Come forth! The king of beasts dancing atop the summit of the moonlight wilderness! Lunalight Leo Dancer (Lv.10, ATK: 3500)!"
A rather viciously looking woman with purple skin, a wild light grey hair and a huge sword appeared out of the Fusion portal and landed on the field.
"When Kaleido Chick is send to the Graveyard by a card effect, I can return Polymerization back to my hand!" That annoying card again, huh? "I will finish the duel this turn! Go, Leo Dancer! Destroy Astral Angel Dragolight!"
A spark appeared within the Fusion's eyes for a moment after which it charged straight for my dragon. Was she for real? Only a brute would do that!
"In the end you are just a brute that charges without a plan, huh?" I shook my head. "I activate Dragolight's effect! I detach one Xyz Material from it to negate the destruction and then inflict all of the damage I would have taken to you instead! Illusion Barrier Stone!"
My dragon absorbed one of its Overlay units and spread its wings, the gems on the tips of them glowing as a multi-colored barrier ready to absorb the attack.
"Your monster has such effect!?" The lookalike exclaimed shocked.
"You… really don't read the card text of cards, do you?" What a joke!
"I won't let it end this way!" the girl exclaimed and then jumped onto a column of ice after which she leaped toward a building. What now? Trying to run away, or-! Ah, she is going for an Action Card! "I activate the Action Card – Natural Camouflage!"
Natural Camouflage (Spell)
If a monster on the field battles: Target that monster; its ATK becomes the same as the monster it battles until the end of the Damage Step, and it cannot be destroyed by that battle.
As Lunalight Leo Dancer charged toward my dragon, her skin and clothes suddenly changed color, turning white. The monster was almost indistinguishable from the frozen world around us, but I was sure that this effect did more than change the fashion sense of her ace.
"With Natural Camouflage's effect, my monster's attack will become the same as the monster it battles, but Lunalight Leo Dancer won't be destroyed by the battle!" the copy explained as her monster's sword crashed against mine's barrier.
Lunalight Leo Dancer, ATK: 3500 → 1000
"It seems that you are going to lose because of the advice that you gave me." The girl said.
"Due to Dragolight's own effect, my monster won't be destroyed in that battle either." The barrier burst and my monster flew away from Leo Dancer, who returned to the lookalike's field. "This battle ends in a draw!"
Lunalight Leo Dancer, ATK: 1000 → 3500
"That's when Lunalight Leo Dancer's effect activates!" the lookalike raised her hand toward the Fusion. "Leo Dancer can attack twice per turn and after her first attack all of your monsters will be destroyed!"
"What!?" The Fusion suddenly swung its sword and a snowstorm engulfed my two monsters, freezing their bodies and, worse than that, their cores, which blew up and left my field covered in dust.
"Now attack directly!" The Leo Dancer swung its sword toward me again. I gritted my teeth and raised my Duel Disk to block the attack with my blade, but the Fusion's slash just slammed against me.
"Kkkyyyyyaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!" I slammed against a building and fell down onto my knees.
『Avice LP: 4000 - 3500 → 500』
"I set a card and end my turn." I glared up at the doppelganger. "Are you going to beg for mercy now? No matter how many Summoning methods you Xyz Remnants learn, I'll still defeat you!"
"Let's see about that." I stood backup and grinned. "You showed that you are a worthy opponent, so I will go out against you for a bit, ok? My turn, draw!"
『Turn 4 [Avice] LP: 500, Hand: 3』
I looked at my cards and then back at my opponent. "Usually, I could use the effect of Astral Angel Digital in my Graveyard to banish all copies of it and draw a card for each, but there's no need to do that against you."
"You're not going to take me serious?" the girl clenched her fist in anger. "I will make you regret those words!"
"Let's see about that." I smirked and took two cards from my hand before playing them. "I activate the Continuous Spells, Astral Angel Der Erste and Astral Angel Das Letzte! Now, let me show you their effects! First, Das Letzte lets me target a number of cards you control up to the number of Continuous Spell I control and negate their effects! I choose your Lunalight Leo Dancer!"
My spell fired an electric charge at the Fusion Monster, when it suddenly raised its sword and blocked the attack.
"Leo Dancer can't be targeted and is unaffected by your effects!" my opponent pointed out.
"Heh, I already knew that! I just wanted to show you that despite your monster's abilities, it's still too weak to face my brightest star." I explained to her. "Oh, and before I forget, Des Erste's effect lets me add one Astral Angel from my deck to the hand when it's activated. I choose Astral Angel Magnificus Lion."
I added the card to my hand. Now, it was time for the last act.
"Here comes and the last act! I activate the second effect of both Der Erste and Das Letzte to move them into my Pendulum Zones!" My two cards turned into masks and flew into the air where they were suspended by two columns of green light.
"Pendulum Zones?" the girl tilted her head to the side. "What's that?"
"When Der Erste and Das Letzte are in the Pendulum Zones, they have the Pendulum Scales of one and nine, therefore, I can Pendulum Summon any monster whose Level is between two and eight! " The green pendulum appeared in the air above me. "Swing, pendulum of balance, arise within my soul and become a path of light! Pendulum Summon! Arise before me, my monsters! From my hand, choose Astral Angel Magnificus Lion (Lv.6, ATK: 2100) and holy warrior of light and dreams, the light of my soul, Sola Starlit the Pendulum Seraph (Lv.6, ATK: 2500)!"
"Pendulum Summon?" the copy looked at my monsters in confusion. "Is that the Xyz Dimension's new weapon?"
"It's Standard's new weapon." I corrected her. "Pendulum Summoning is the new power that the Duelists of Standard have gained to fight against you."
"Is that so?" the girl narrowed her eyes. "Then that would mean that Standard is an enemy as well. But, now you have two Level Six monsters, so you're going to bright out another Xyz, right?"
"Incorrect." I waved my finger. "Dragolight was the only Xyz Monster in my deck, but I'm going to show you something much better. I activate the effect of Astral Angel Einplus in my Graveyard. I increase Sola's level by one in order to revive it."
The triangle rotated around my Sola and she raised her fists over her head.
Sola Starlit the Pendulum Seraph, Lv: 6 → Lv: 7
"For you to bring back the Tuner monster…" the Yuzu lookalike finally realized what I was going to do. "Another Synchro Summon?"
"That's right! I tune my Level Seven Sola Starlit the Pendulum Slayer to my Level One Astral Angel Einplus!" Einplus flew forward and turned into a ring that Sola passed through.
"The supreme angel with the burning soul of a star. Spread your beautiful wings of destruction and erase our enemies with your blazing light! Synchro Summon! Level Eight! Sola Electra the Synchro Seraph (Lv.8, ATK: 3000)!"
"Tch, I expected a Xyz Summon." The girl glared at me irritated. "What kind of Xyz Duelist are you to discard your own Summoning method?"
"Are you really that stupid?" I tilted my head to the side in confusion. "You still believe that I'm an Xyz Remnant? Idiot! This was just a lie to get your attention and beat your sorry ass. In reality, I'm from Standard!"
"You are trying to lie now?" I almost fell from that. Seriously? "I saw you Xyz Summoning."
"Whatever." I wasn't going to waste my words on this idiot. "I activate Astral Angel Das Letzte's Pendulum Effect. I release Astral Angel Magnificus Lion to give half of its attack power to Sola."
My monster roared and its body faded away with the spirit surrounding Sola's wings, turning their color from blue to yellow.
Sola Electra the Synchro Seraph, ATK: 3000 + 1050 → 4050
"F-four thousand attack points!" My opponent exclaimed.
"Let's battle!" I cried out and Sola flew into the air, summoning her weapons. "Sola Electra the Synchro Seraph, attack Lunalight Leo Dancer! Photon Particle Stream!"
My monster flew a beam toward Leo Dancer and the Fusion Monster put its sword in front of its body to try and block the attack.
"Trap activate! Lunalight Reaction Dance! This destroys your attacking monster and inflicts six hundred points of damage!" A barrier formed in front of Leo Dancer and blocked my attack. "That's for not taking me serious!"
Lunalight Reaction Dance (Trap) Normal
Activate when a face-up "Lunalight" monster you control is targeted for an attack. Target the attacking monster: Destroy it, and if you do, inflict 600 damage to your opponent. You can banish this card from your Graveyard to target 3 "Lunalight" monsters in your Graveyard, including 1 Fusion Monster: Shuffle all targets into the deck, and if you do, draw 1 card.
"Fool!" I grinned and threw my hand upward to point at Sola. "When an effect that targets Sola Electra is activated, I can banish one of my Pendulum Cards to destroy your card before it activated! Cipher Reflection!"
Sola Electra illuminated the trap card with her wings and the card turned completely white before shattering.
"And when Cipher Reflects destroys your card, I can bring back another Sola monster from my Extra Deck! I call you, Sola Starlit the Pendulum Seraph (Lv.6, ATK: 2500)!"
"N-no way!" the copy exclaimed. "You brought Sola from the Extra Deck despite it being used as Synchro Material?"
"Pendulum monsters go to the Extra Deck upon leaving the field." I pointed out. "But more importantly for you, with your trap destroyed, my Sola Electra the Synchro Seraph's attack will go through."
And indeed, as I said that the barrier that protected Leo Dancer broke and the beam incinerated the feline monster, and send the doppelganger flying backward.
『Serena LP: 1800 - 550 → 1250』
"And for the finish, I attack you directly with Sola Starlit the Pendulum Seraph! Linear Ray Artillery!" my fairy flew over and put her palms together, firing a laser at the Academia Duelist.
"I activate the Action Card – Frost!" Huh? When did she managed to grab that one? "This spell negates the attack of one monster and then halves its attack points!"
Frost (Spell) Normal
When a monster declares an attack: Target that monster; negate the attack, and if you do, halve its ATK until the end of the next turn.
Sola Starlit's beam faded before it could reach its target and my monster cried out. I looked at her and saw her legs starting to freeze. She tried to fire another beam to free herself, but her hands and wings were frozen as well, leaving her unable to move.
Sola Starlit the Pendulum Seraph, ATK: 2500 → 1250
"I see that you were able to get the hang of Action Cards." I tch-ed. This interference in my plays was starting to get really annoying.
"There's nothing more you can do." The copy stated. "Of course you could enter your Main Phase two and use Digital's effect to draw new cards, but they will be useless."
"You still think that you got a chance, don't you?" I sighed. How could someone get this annoying, really? "Allow me to demonstrate to you why I'm the master of space. I enter Main Phase Two and activate Der Erste's Pendulum Effect! I target one LIGHT monster and use it to attack you again during the Main Phase!"
"What!?" Heh, the girl's eyes became as wide as dinner plates. The ice that covered Sola Starlit began to slowly crack and she broke through it before aiming her palms at the bitch once again.
"That's the final attack for real! Linear Ray Artillery!" Sola fired her beams and hit the lookalike in the chest. She screamed and was slammed against a column of ice before dropping down.
『Serena LP: 1250 - 1250 → 0』
『Winner: Avice』
"And that's it." I had to admit, the duel wasn't too boring, but only if this barbarian knew how to do anything more than charging mindlessly into everything, the duel might have been a bit more challenging.
3rd POV
Levant walked carefully through the burning field. The Duelist glanced left and then right. Who knew where Reiji's security cameras could be hidden. Well, him of course. He didn't just join LDS for nothing, and while hacking in the cameras would be too obvious, he made sure to map their location, so he could avoid being detected.
Finding a nice blind spot in the city wasn't easy when there were duelists running around, searching for Pendulum Cards and what not. But he finally found himself a nice spot behind a rock and pulled out the card that Hikaru gave him. Without much of a thought, he dropped it on the ground and then stepped back. The strange card began to glow purple and a vortex formed above it. Levant put a hand over his eyes and tried to focus on what was in front of him.
After a few seconds, he saw several silhouettes coming toward him. So, with a triumphant smile, he greeted them.
"Welcome to Standard, Haou."
Elizabeth's POV
I prepared myself for my brother's turn. Managing to not lose to a One Turn Kill was much harder against him than any other opponent I ever had. Which weren't that many…
『Turn 4 [Evan] LP: 3400, Hand: 5』
"I activate the Spell Card, Gear Repair to discard the Level Three DARK monster, ChronoDevil Protector Golem, and Special Summon the Level Three ChronoDevil Timefrozer Ghost (Lvl.3, ATK: 1300) from my deck." The little ghost flew in front of my brother and chuckled darkly.
"Next, I activate ChronoDevil Protector Golem's effect. Since all of my monsters are DARK, I can Special Summon it from the Graveyard." The monster made from rock raised in front of my brother with its 2000 defense and crossed its arms defensively. "Now I Normal Summon ChronoDevil Stream Supporter (Lvl.4, ATK: 1800) and I believe you already know its effect."
"At the cost of reducing its attack to zero, you are going to Special Summon a Level three or lower DARK monster from your deck with its effects negated." I said. He had used this card so many times, that I remembered its effect like it was mine.
ChronoDevil Stream Supporter, ATK: 1800 → 0
"Join the rest, Dark Resonator (Lv.3, DEF: 300)." That second tuner monster which looked a lot like Timefrozer Ghost flew out of Stream Supporter's robe and laughed. "Now I tune my level four Stream Supporter to my Level three Dark Resonator!"
A level 7 Synchro then. I knew what was going to show up. Dark Resonator turned into three rings and Stream Supporter flew through it.
"Fearsome beast breaking through the boundaries of time! Lead me toward the future! Synchro Summon! Level Seven! ChronoDevil Mystic-Flare Dragon (Lv. 7, ATK: 2400)!"
'The strongest of my brother's ChronoDevil monsters.' I gulped watching the dragon. Mystic-Flare, it was another card that Evan used a lot, maybe even more than Phantomus. It was his to-go monster and now I was the one staring at its dangerous form.
"Now I activate Timefrozer Ghost's effect. Once per turn, I can negate the effects of one card that you control. I choose to negate your Equip Spell: Ancient Artifact – Terra Justice." The ghost fired its ectoplasm and covered the wand with it.
Oracle Sister of Flames – Miranda, ATK: 2600 - 600 → 2000
"Now your monster is weaker than his!" Hema cried out.
"He's not done yet." I whispered. There was still a tuner on his field, which meant that another Synchro Summon was on its way.
"Now I tune my Level Three ChronoDevil Protector Golem to my Level Three ChronoDevil Timefrozer Ghost." And again, the ghost turned into three rings that flew around Protector Golem.
"Malefic soul trapped in the cursed prison of metallic demise! Unleash your nightmarish aggressiveness! Lead me toward the future! Synchro Summon! Level Six! ChronoDevil Paradox-Claw Beast (Lv.6, ATK: 2000)!"
"Here he comes!" Hema warned me.
"Battle! I attack Oracle Sister of Flames – Miranda with ChronoDevil Mystic-Flare Dragon!" The dragon leaned forward and pointed its cannons at my magician. "At this moment I activate ChronoDevil Mystic-Flare Dragon's effect! If it battles a monster with lower or equal attack I can automatically destroy that monster without damage calculation and inflict its attack as damage! Time Nullify!"
The dragon's weapons fired, enveloping Miranda in a green light. My monster cried out and then its body exploded, while I grunted in pain and my body leaned a little to the right. We were in an Action Field, so the damage was going to be real, although not as fatal as in other duels.
『Elizabeth LP: 3200 - 2000 → 1200』
"When Miranda is destroyed, I can add one Ancient Artifact from my deck to the hand." A card popped from my deck and I took it. "I add Ancient Artifact – Thunder Sword."
"Next, ChronoDevil Paradox-Claw Beast destroy Oracle Sister of Blacksmith – Aiz! King's Cry!" Paradox-Claw Beast leaned forward and opened its mouth, unleashing an ultrasonic howl that destroyed my monster and knocked me back.
『Elizabeth LP: 1200 - 600 → 600』
"Form more than three thousand, or Life Points dropped to just six hundred in an instant!" Yuki said, worried.
"Ah, those are some dangerous Synchro Monsters." Sunny rubbed the back of her head, silly. "It's good thing that I'm not the one dueling right now."
"I set a card and end my turn." Evan finished, then gestured toward me. "It's your move, Eli."
"My turn!" I exclaimed, drawing a new card. It wasn't like I didn't expect this to happen, I knew that there was a huge chance for my brother to wipe out my entire field, but I wasn't going to give up on this duel.
『Turn 5 [Elizabeth] LP: 600, Hand: 7』
"When there are no monsters on my field, I can Special Summon Oracle Sister of Reinforcements – Lein (Lv.4, ATK: 1700)!" The spellcaster appeared on my field holding her wand. "Next, I Normal Summon Oracle Sister of Shades – Jane (Lv.2, ATK: 200) and use her effect to change her own attribute from LIGHT to FIRE!"
"A tuner monster that can change its own Attribute? No, you don't plan to Synchro Summon, do you?" So, he saw through me?
"I activate Jane's effect!" I continued. "I pay five hundred Life Points to add one Fusion card from the deck to my hand." I winched a little bit, feeling a burning in my chest while Jane pulled a card from my deck and gave it to me.
『Elizabeth LP: 600 - 500 → 100』
"I add Oracle Sister - Energy Fusion." I showed the card to my brother.
Oracle Sister - Energy Fusion (Spell) Normal
Fusion Summon 1 "Oracle Sister" Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters from your hand and/or field as Fusion Materials. If your LP are lower than your opponent, you can use monsters from both sides of the field instead.
"A fusion, huh?" My brother's eyes narrowed. "But I know what you plan to do next and it won't work. I activate my continuous trap, Shadow Curtain! With this card on my field, you can no longer target any DARK monsters with card or effects!"
A black mist came out of the card and surrounded Evan's side of the field, leaving both him and his monsters out of my view. Damn it, I was just planning to use Natural Harmony's effect to change one of their attributes!
"Then, I will activate the Equip Spell, Ancient Artifact – Crown of Herbs to revive Oracle Sister of Flames – Miranda (RANK.4, ATK: 2000) and equip her with this spell." A crown made from various jewels in the form of flowers appeared on my field and a hand reached from the ground to grab it. This arm turned out to be Miranda's and the monster raised back onto the field before putting the artifact on top of her head. "And next, I activate Natural Harmony's first effect to gain four hundred Life Points for each of my monsters!"
『Elizabeth LP: 100 + 1200 → 1300』
"So you healed up again?" Evan rolled his eyes unimpressed. "Then I will just have to beat you harder next turn!"
"We'll see." I narrowed my eyes and looked down at my deck. "When I gain Life Points while Crown of Herbs is on the field, I get to draw a card." I looked at the card I got and nodded. "Using the Scale One, Oracle Sister of Tranquility - Mimi, and the Scale Seven, Oracle Sister of Lofty – Salome, I set the Pendulum Scale!"
"So you set the Pendulum Scale? Does that mean that she is coming?" my brother asked me.
"That's right!" I nodded. "I can Pendulum Summon monster from Level Two to Six! Swing Pendulum of Life, be the path of light for my soul and give beginning to a new deity! Pendulum Summon! Arise, the millennium goodness sleeping within the mortals' soul! Tempest Sina the Pendulum Sorcerer (Lv.6, ATK: 2400)!" The spellcaster appeared beside her comrades.
"While Tempest Sina is on my field, all of my monsters are protected from card effect destruction once per turn." I pointed out. "Now, I activate Oracle Sister – Energy Fusion to fuse together Oracle Sister of Shades – Jane and Oracle Sister of Flames – Miranda!"
A vortex appeared between my two monsters and they turned into piles of rocks and flames respectively before falling into it. I crossed my hands over my chest and began to chant for my new monster.
"The witches of earth and fire will combine their souls and minds to forge a devastating force of nature! Rise from your slumber and lay the foundations for a new life! Fusion Summon! The magician of flames and shatters! Oracle Sister of Impregnability – Stora!"
Out of the portal flew a tall woman wearing heavy, light brown armor. The warrior had a helmet to cover her face with a black visor over her eyes and a single violet ponytail sticking out of the back of her head with a golden ring tied around it. Her armor had huge boots with spikes on the foot and two blades sticking out of her thighs. The armor that protected the main body had a lion emblem on the chest and the shoulder plates were two blocks of armor with orange energy flowing through several slam cracks that were found in her entire armor.
The woman's arms were covered by heavy gauntlets, which had a circular plate on the backs. Those plates were used to hold her shields, both of which were twice her size with the shape of a rectangle. The monster groaned and moved the shields in front of her, the locks that were placed on each of them, connecting with the other to create an impenetrable gate while the blades that were sticking from her thighs stuck themselves in the ground to give her more sturdiness.
Oracle Sister of Impregnability – Stora
Level: 6/Attribute: EARTH FIRE/Type: Spellcaster/Fusion/Effect
ATK: 200/DEF: 2800
1 EARTH monster + 1 FIRE monster
Effect: Your opponent cannot target monsters you control for attack or with card effects, except this one. Once per turn: If your opponent's LP is higher than yours with the difference being 1000 or more, you can inflict 1500 damage to your opponent. If a Spellcaster-Type monster(s) is Special Summoned on your side of the field while this card is in your Graveyard: Special Summon this card, but banish it when it leaves the field.
"So, you build yourself a wall, huh?" Evan commented.
"While Stora is on my field, you can't target any of my other monsters with attacks or card effects." I explained. "And with her second effect, when my Life Points are lower than yours, I can inflict fifteen hundred damage to you!"
"What!?" My brother exclaimed. Stora aimed her shields toward him and a wave of meteors fell from the sky, knocking Evan off his feet.
"Aaaaaarrrrrgggghhhhhhhh!" He screamed and fell on his back, gasping.
『Evan LP: 3400 - 1500 → 1900』
"Now let's finish this! I activate Ancient Artifact – Thunder Sword and equip it to Oracle Sister of Reinforcements – Lein, increasing her attack power by eight hundred!"
The sword appeared in front of my monster and she looked over it confused before taking the handle.
Oracle Sister of Reinforcements – Lein, ATK: 1700 + 800 → 2500
"Let's battle now. Tempest Sina the Pendulum Sorcerer attackParadox-Claw Beast! Vortex Arrow!" My monster fired a ball of magical energy that carved a hole in Evan's beast and destroyed it.
『Evan LP: 1900 - 400 → 1500』
"Second attack! Lein destroy his Mystic-Flare Dragon!" Lein leaped forward and slashed Mystic-Flare Dragon in half. The monster took a step back and roared before its core exploded.
『Evan LP: 1500 - 100 → 1400』
"When Mystic-Flare is destroyed, I can add one spell card from my deck to the hand." My brother said, picking a card from his deck before showing it to me. "I add Tri-Atom Quantum to my hand!"
"You aren't the only one with an effect to add cards. When the monster equipped with Thunder Sword destroys a monster by battle, I can draw a card!" I looked over the card before grabbing another one from my hand. "I set two cards and end my turn!"
"During the End Phase of your turn, the second effect of Shadow Curtain activates." My brother looked up at me. "If there are no DARK monsters on my field, this card will destroy itself and my Life Points are going to be halved."
A dark aura surrounded him and my brother clenched his chest. Our Life Points were close and while mines were lower, I had the advantage in term of card effects. But I didn't take into account the negate effect of Shadow Curtain.
『Evan LP: 1400/2 → 700』
"My turn, draw!" My brother roared and pulled a card from his deck. I don't know why, but I felt a chill go down my spine.
『Turn 6 [Evan] LP: 700, Hand: 3』
"Be vigilant!" Hema warned me. "His Life Points are below one thousand, so it's most likely that he will try to finish the duel in this turn!"
"I activate Tri-Atom Quantum!" The card that he added through Mystic-Flare's effect… "I banish ChronoDevil Paradox-Claw Beast from my Graveyard and Special Summon three DARK monsters from my deck whose combine level equals six, but their effects will be negated. I Special Summon ChronoDevil Gear Tuner (Lv.1, DEF: 300), ChronoDevil Wild Tamer Wolfy (Lv.3, DEF: 1400) and ChronoDevil Jolly Jester (Lv.2, DEF: 800)."
'These monsters.' I looked carefully at the cards that my brother played. "They are all Tuner monsters. Why would he call out three tuners on his field?"
"Next is the effect of ChronoDevil Protector Golem. Since all of my monsters are DARK, I can Special Summon it from the Graveyard." The rock monster raised with a groan and kneeled next to the other monsters with its 2000 defense. "And then, I activate the Spell: Chrono Reborn, to revive one DARK monster from my Graveyard, I choose ChronoDevil Time Psycher (Lv.3, DEF: 300)."
"That monster again!?" I knew all too well what Time Psycher was going to do.
"When Time Psycher is Special Summoned, I get to draw a card for every ChronoDevil on my field. There are five right now, so I draw five new cards." A-amazing! Not only did he gather five monsters, but he also still has six more cards inside his hand. "And then Time Psycher's second effect lets me change the level of a monster on the field to anything between one and six. I make my Gear Tuner a Level Four monster!"
ChronoDevil Gear Tuner, Lv: 1 → Lv: 4
"Then I activate Spell: Star Changer, to increase Time Psycher's level from three to four!" Another level changing effect? And with two level fours he could summon that monster.
ChronoDevil Time Psycher, Lv: 3 → Lv: 4
"I overlay my two level four monsters to bring out my newest addition!" The two ChronoDevil monsters looked at each other and then they both flew into the air, transforming into purple energies.
"The dragon guardian of the space, hear my command! Let the foolish challengers know the wrath of thousand stars! Xyz Summon! Come, Beta Spike – Space Dragon (RANK: 4, ATK: 2500)!"
The huge pitch black dragon flew out of the galaxy portal and turned around in the air before landing behind Evan. The beast glared at me and then roared loudly.
"It's not over yet! Now I'm going to tune the Level Three Protector Golem to the Level Two Jolly Jester!" The jester put its hands in front of its face and transformed into two rings that flew around Protector Golem and transformed it into three orbs of light.
"Within the timeless abyss, I call the android with unmoving gears. Open your metal heart and set forth its blazing black flames! Synchro Summon! Level Five, ChronoDevil Retro-Fractured Android (Lv.5, DEF: 1900)!"
"Both a Xyz and a Synchro summon in one turn." Hema gulped and looked over at me. "Will your set cards be enough to survive this turn?"
I gulped. Hema appeared frightened and she was the calmest of my personalities, as well as the most experienced one. 'You can see his essence as a Duelist, can't you?'
"We all can." Sunny joined in. "Your brother's will is like nothing I have seen before. It's a blazing pillar of rough strength that towers above all of us."
"Don't forget that I still haven't Normal Summoned during this turn." Evan pointed out. "I release ChronoDevil Wild Tamer Wolfy to Advance Summon Chrono Phantomus the Pendulum Slayer (Lv.6, ATK: 2500)!"
A clock gear appeared before the Pendulum Monster and it jumped through it, with Phantomus landing on the other side. Phantomus, Beta Spike, he was summoning all of his strongest monsters to fight me.
"Once per turn, Phantomus can inherit the effect of a face-up Pendulum Monster in my Extra Deck. Lead us your strength Timefrozer Ghost. Cursed Void Absorb!" The spirit of Timefrozer Ghost flew around Phantomus and then into his chains. "Now Phantomus can negate the effects of a card once per turn! Let's go! Beta Spike, attack Oracle Sister of Impregnability – Stora! Nova Spear!"
Beta Spike roared and lifted itself in the air; wings glowing purple, it charged horn first toward my monster.
"Huh? He attacks with a monster that has less attack points?" Sunny wondered.
"Beta Spike's ability!" I quickly realized. "But I won't let you, Trap Open – Xyz Providence! With this card's effect, I detach all of Beta Spike's Xyz Materials and gain six hundred attack points for each!"
Xyz Providence (Trap) Normal
Target 1 Xyz Monster on the field; detach all of its Xyz Materials, and if you do, gain 600 LP for each. For the rest of this turn, that monster cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects.
"I activate Timefrozer Ghost's effect that Phantomus absorbed in response!" My brother threw his fist forward. "Once per turn, I can negate the effects of one face-up card on the field and I choose Xyz Providence!"
"That's what I was hoping for!" I smirked. "Second trap open! Oracle Sister - Soul Exchange! With its effect, I tribute Oracle Sister of Reinforcements – Lein to Special Summon Oracle Sister of Blacksmith – Aiz (Lv.3, DEF: 600) from my Graveyard!"
Oracle Sister - Soul Exchange (Trap) Continuous
Once per turn, you can Tribute 1 "Oracle Sister" monster you control: Special Summon 1 Spellcaster-Type monster from your hand or Graveyard whose Level/Rank is less than, or equal to that of the Tributed monster. If this card is in your Graveyard and you have 1000 or less LP, you ban banish this card from your Graveyard, to target 2 Spellcaster monsters in your Graveyard with the same Level: Special Summon these targets, and if you do, immediately after this effect resolves Xyz Summon using monsters on your side of the field, including those targets.
"When Aiz is Special Summoned, you will be able to equip an Ancient Artifact directly from your Graveyard, however my attack will go through before that chain resolves." My eyes widened when I heard that. No way… "I activate Beta Spike's effect! Once per turn, when it battles, I can detach one Xyz material from it, so I take no damage from that battle, and my opponent takes twice the damage I would have received! Power Punishment!"
The dragon roared and swung its head, bringing the spear down onto Stora's shields. My spellcaster pushed back, trying to hold against the attack, but the shockwave passed through her and pushed me in the guts. My god… I gritted my teeth and took a step back to catch my breath after this hit.
『Elizabeth LP: 1300 - 800 → 500』
"Aiz's effect will now resolve!" I cried out. "I equip Ancient Artifact – Terra Justice to Tempest Sina the Pendulum Sorcerer, increasing her attack by six hundred points!"
The usual long rod carried by Sina disappeared and the much smaller one appeared in its place. She grabbed it and her attack power boosted itself.
Tempest Sina the Pendulum Sorcerer, ATK: 2400 + 600 → 3000
"And now the second part of Aiz's effect lets me destroy one monster on your field! I choose to destroy Beta Spike – Space Dragon!" My magician swung her hammer and threw it to Beta Spike, knocking the dragon backward.
"When a DARK monster I control would be destroyed, I can banish Chrono Reborn from my Graveyard instead." Suddenly a clock gear formed behind Beta Spike and levitated the dragon back onto its feet. "Next, from my hand I'm going to activate the Quick-Play Spell: Timeline Fusion to fuse together Chrono Phantomus the Pendulum Slayer and Beta Spike – Space Dragon!"
A huge clock gear appeared on the field with the multicolored portal swirling inside of it. My brother's two monsters looked at each other and then jumped through, their bodies merging into a single being.
"Hollow soul of the demon king, take the sacrificed dragon of dark storms and unveil your true power! The demon king with unrivaled hatred, shatter the chains and raise through calamity! Fusion Summon! Embodiment of my burning soul! Berserk Phantomus the Fusion Slayer (Lv.9, ATK: 2900)!"
"I think we are toast." Sunny muttered.
"Battle! Berserk Phantomus the Fusion Slayer, tear down Oracle Sister of Impregnability – Stora!" Evan's Fusion Monster threw its axes into the air and then grabbed them with two chains before swinging them toward Sora.
"I activate Kuriborn's effect! When a monster declares its attack I can equip this card from my hand to one monster and make it change its battle position!" The blue fluff ball appeared on the field and jumped on Phantomus, forcing the huge monster to kneel down and pull its axes in front of its body. "Furthermore, a monster equipped with Kuriborn cannot change its battle position, nor be destroyed by battle or card effects."
"Tch, then I will activate my Quick-Play Spell – Twin Twisters! I discard a card from my hand to target two Spell or Trap cards on your field and destroy them!" Two whirlwinds flew out of Evan's card and toward my field. "The cards I choose to destroy areOracle Sister - Soul Exchange and Natural Harmony of Oracle Sisters!"
My two cards shattered, leaving me with only my monsters and Pendulum Scales. At least Sina still had her boost from the equip spell.
"I'm going to set a card and end my turn!" Evan finished, laying his last card.
This was a bad situation for me right now. Even though his Berserk Phantomus was forced into defense position, due to Kuriborn's effect, I wouldn't be able to destroy him and with Retro-FracturedAndroid, he would be able to copy the effect of any Spell or Trap card in our Graveyards, including his own Magic Cylinder.
I had to bet it all on my next draw. If I didn't draw the right card on my next turn, it could be my last one.
"You are not alone in this fight, original." Hema appeared in front of me. "We are all fighting beside you, even if we aren't the ones dueling."
"Your desire to win is ours as well!" Yuki smiled at me. "Take our combined strength and unlock the path,"
"Toward your brother's true heart!" Sunny exclaimed.
"You three," I smiled as well. They were so silly and their words were so melodramatic, but I could feel the strength of our bonds materializing in my hand. "This is going to be the last turn, brother! My turn, draw!"
『Turn 7 [Elizabeth] LP: 500, Hand: 1』
I looked at the card that I drew and immediately realized what I had to do. "Hope answered my wishes! When there are two or more Spellcaster-Type monsters on my field, I can Special Summon Oracle Sister of Synergy – Tunia (Lv.1, ATK: 200) from my hand." The little beast landed on my field and closed its wings. "Next, I activate Tunia's effect! By targeting a Spellcaster-type monster on my field, I can make the Level of all my monsters the same as it! I target, of course, the Level Six, Tempest Sina the Pendulum Sorcerer!"
Oracle Sister of Blacksmith – Aiz, Lv.3 → Lv.6
Oracle Sister of Synergy – Tunia, Lv.1 → Lv.6
"Using the Level Six, Oracle Sister of Blacksmith – Aiz, Oracle Sister of Synergy – Tunia and Tempest Sina the Pendulum Sorcerer, I overlay!" All three of my monsters transformed into beams of light, one orange, one green, and one blue. The portal appeared in front of me and all three of them flew into it, causing the vortex to collapse and explode.
"Brilliant deity of this trembling world, give a smile that breaks darkness and bring forth an unyielding hope! Xyz Summon! Rank 6! Grand performed crossing space and time! Eden Sina the Xyz Sorcerer (RANK: 6, ATK: 3000)!"
"So you finally summoned Eden!" My brother smirked and threw his arms to the side. "Eden Sina the Xyz Sorcerer versus Berserk Phantomus the Fusion Slayer! Who's going to win?"
"I won't fight your monster." I shook my head and then gestured up to Sina. "I activate Sina's effect! If she was Xyz Summoned using materials with three different Attributes, I can detach all Xyz Materials from her to return all cards in our hands, on the field and in our Graveyards back into the deck, then give her three hundred attack points for each card that I returned with this effect! World Triple!"
"You what!?" My brother cried out.
Sina flew into the air absorbing all of her Xyz Materials into her heart, then she swung her staff and a clock formed behind, glowing like a star that erased everything else that was on the field. The clock arrows began to move backward and waves of colorful energy was unleashed from my monster's wand and flew around us, making circles or taking the form of a smiling face as if it was alive. At the same time the whole field started to change its appearance, becoming orange, then pink, and then blue and so on while the flow of time began to move backward.
Eden Sina the Xyz Sorcerer, ATK: 3000 +12 900 → 15 900
"This shouldn't be legal." My brother muttered while staring at my monster. There was no way he could survive this attack.
"It's over." I clenched my fist. "Eden Sina the Xyz Sorcerer, attack my brother directly! Triple Void Ray!"
My monster swung her staff which began glowing as she leaned into the air and fired a homing laser toward my brother. I sighed and lowered my Duel Disk. It was over.
"If that's your best then you really are pathetic as a duelist, sis." W-what?
I looked up and my brother reached out with his right hand, grabbing the beam. What the heck? He grabbed the attack and just reflected it aside casually like it was nothing.
"But how!?" He had no cards on his field, hand or Graveyard! When Eden Sina attacked, she also negated all Action Cards, which meant that he had no outs!
"The card that I discarded with Twin Twister was this one." A hologram appeared in front of my brother to show the card. I couldn't believe it… "Necro Gardna has the quick effect to negate one attack by banishing itself from the Graveyard. And this effect could be activated at any moment during your turn, so I banished it the moment you summoned this monster."
"N-no way!" Hema looked pale like a ghost. Well, she was technically a ghost but you get what I mean. "He found a weakness in our strongest monster!"
"More than that." Yuki clenched her fist. "He knew that we were going to summon it. He was able to predict that the duel would reach this point!"
"During the end of this turn, Sina's attack returns to normal." I couldn't believe it. To be played for a fool like this…
Eden Sina the Xyz Sorcerer, ATK: 15 900 - 12 900 → 3000
"It's my turn. Draw!"
『Turn 8 [Evan] LP: 700, Hand: 1』
"I activate the Spell: Magical Pendulum Box! This spell lets me draw two cards and if they are Pendulum monsters, I get to keep them, but if I draw anything else, it gets send to the Graveyard." I watched Evan as he drew two cards and showed them to me. "The card that I drew are ChronoDevil Timescale Champion and ChronoDevil Clocklord Dragon! I set the Pendulum Scale using these two monsters!"
The two ChronoDevils raised into the crimson red columns on each side of my brother and a single demonic pendulum began to swing between them.
"First off, Timescale Champion lets me draw a card when another ChronoDevil card is activated in the Pendulum Zone." My brother looked at the card and grinned. "With everything prepared, I can now Pendulum Summon monsters whose Level is Five or Six! Swing, Pendulum of Destruction, burn inside my soul and become my path to crimson victory! Pendulum Summon! Appear before me, my servant! From the Extra Deck, Supreme Devil King, Chrono Phantomus the Pendulum Slayer (Lv. 6, ATK: 2500)!"
The single fiend descended onto the field and crossed its arms with a bored expression on its face.
"When Chrono Phantomus is Pendulum Summoned, I can reduces the attack and defense of all your monsters by five hundred! Chain of Degrading Souls!" A black mist formed under my monster's legs and several chains flew out, wrapping around her arms and legs.
Eden Sina the Xyz Sorcerer, ATK: 3000 - 500 → 2500, DEF: 2500 – 500 → 2000
"And for the finish, I will activate this Spell Card: Pendulum Fusion!" P-pendulum Fusion!? "With it, I can Fusion Summon using monsters from both my field and my Pendulum Zones! Chrono Phantomus the Pendulum Slayer, ChronoDevil Clocklord Dragon, fuse into the strongest of all slayers!"
"Hollow soul of the demon king, take the sacrificed dragon master of spears and unveil your true power! The demon king with unrivaled hatred, shatter the chains and raise through calamity! Fusion Summon! Embodiment of my burning soul! Berserk Phantomus the Fusion Slayer (Lv.9, ATK: 2900)!"
"This…" I just fell on my knees. I didn't feel anything, just… despair. Why? He was always better than me! No matter how much I tried, no matter how much I trained and studied, I could never surpass him. Was there nothing that I could best my brother at?
"Attack! Berserk Phantomus the Fusion Slayer get rid of Eden Sina the Xyz Sorcerer! Calamity Void Slash!" The monster threw its axes and then grabbed them with the chains before swinging them down onto my Sina, cutting her in three pieces.
『Elizabeth LP: 500 - 400 → 100』
"Berserk Phantomus' effect now activates. Since he destroyed a monster by battle, I can return him to my Extra Deck face-up and Special Summon Chrono Phantomus the Pendulum Slayer in its place. Rage Reload!" The larger Phantomus disappeared from the field and the original one flew through a portal, activating its arm blades. "Attack her directly! Double Void Slash!"
With nothing on my side, I could only take the complete strength of Phantomus' attack. I only screamed in pain as the blades' strength launched me into the air and slammed my body against a tree. Pain was throbbing in my back and head. My body couldn't even more and I just collapsed on the grass below me.
『Elizabeth LP: 100 - 2500 → 0』
『Winner: Evan』
"You lack the strength to challenge me." I couldn't even look up at my brother when he said that. "All I'm doing right now is for you, but you can't understand it."
His voice, was slowly starting to get quitter. Was I slowly losing my consciousness? No, it wasn't that. With much trouble, I looked up and saw my brother's back. He was walking away. Leaving me.
No…
Please no.
You and Avice are the only thing I got left in this world.
DON'T LEAVE ME! PLEASE!
3rd POV
"Yo! What are you doing?" Ventus asked.
"Kya!" Koharu screamed and threw her hand to slap the intruder, only for him to quickly duck and avoid the attack.
"That wasn't very nice." Ventus muttered. "You could have hit me."
"That was the point, stalker!" Koharu yelled at him. "Did you expect me to pat you on the head for showing out of nowhere?"
"Sorry, sorry." Ventus raised his hands defensively. "I didn't know that you are so easy to scare."
"Hmm, who said that you scared me?" Koharu crossed her arms.
'Well, your scream and reaction kind of did.' Ventus thought, but choose that it was better not to say it out loud. "So, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you wait in hiding or something? Not be, you know, in the middle of the tournament."
"Don't worry about that, what you should…" Koharu suddenly stopped herself. Her eyes widened and fear became apparent in them. "Oh no."
Before Ventus could question her what she saw, the girl suddenly grabbed his arm and pulled him with her behind a rock in the volcanic area.
"Hey! What's this abu-"
"Shhhh!" Koharu put a finger in front of her lips and then looked behind the rook. "They are here."
"They?" Ventus tilted his head. "Do you mean Academia?"
"Not just anyone from Academia." Koharu stuttered. Her fingers began to tremble a little while her eyes watched the group that was walking through the empty city. "The most dangerous of all, the ones that single handedly eliminated the most powerful Duelists in our Dimensions and their Numbers. They are the Armityle Purple Force."
T.M.Y.K. (Since the only two things that I could think about will be appearing in the next two chapters, there will be no new trivia this chapter, sorry.)
Avice: And back for more previews, are ya?
Chapter 38: Supreme Demon Awakens!
Summary: The Battle Royale becomes more dangerous with a dangerous group known as the Obelisk Force starting to attack the other duelists. However, when Evan stumbles upon a few of them, suddenly a strong pain pierces his chest and a dark aura surrounds him, while Avice experiences some changes herself.
Chapter 39: Copy of White
Summary: As the second day of the Battle Royale starts, the remaining duelists choose to separate and look for other survivors. While looking through the ice area, Yuya and Gongenzaka end up in a duel against Hikaru and a girl called Makioka respectively. Meanwhile, Avice and Elizabeth came across a girl that looks just like Avice herself.
Chapter 40: Stages of Rebellion.
Summary: The Battle Royale is at its end and most of the Obelisk Forces have been driven out, despite the heavy loses, the Standard Duelists keep pushing the enemy away. During that time, while Ventus is helping Koharu in searching for Fusion remnants, the two of them come across the strongest duelist that participated in the invasion of the Xyz Dimension – at the same time, Evan and Avice both begin a duel against Yuya's counterparts, Yuri and Yugo respectively.
Chapter 41: Those With Fate in Darkness
Summary: Elizabeth found herself being chased by a Fusion Duelist called the Supreme King. But she comes across Evan who quickly steps in and a duel between the two wielders of Darkness begins. As ChronoDevils and Evil Heroes crash against one another, something suddenly changes about Evan…
Chapter 42: Tune of Daybreak!
Summary: Following the huge amount of destruction caused by Academia's invasion, the Miami Champion is canceled and Reiji announces to the public the creation of an elite squad of Duelists called "Lancers". However, the tension within the newly formed team only increases. While Levant and Reiji try to bring the group together, believing that only through dueling he would be able to make everyone understand the necessity of the Lancers, Evan challenges Shun to a duel.
A/N: So, I was going to end this with a joke about the ancient Greek philosopherPlato defining what's an asshole when Diogenes runs in dragging Evan, screaming "BEHOLD AN ASSHOLE!", but I found that joke too offensive for assholes of all kinds, so I choose to just give a basic summary of it.
Avice: It might be out of character for me to say this, but Bro was really brutal against Sis. At least, he didn't turn her into a common rarity card. It's an improvement from last time.
Last time?
Avice: We... We don't talk about last time.
I'm actually surprised by how fast this one came out. As I already warned you, it was pretty long (although not that big compared to my average chapter length). I wanted to add a few more duels in this one as I promised, but I choose to leave them out for next time.
I have to say, I put a lot of my heart in the Evan vs Elizabeth duel. When it comes to these two dueling one another, I tend to have a track record of making the entire duel pretty underwhelming, so I wanted to make this one feel like a crash between titans with both of them throwing their strongest plays against one another. Hope you guys enjoyed it.
Avice: The author also noticed that there wasn't a chant for Sola Electra the Synchro Seraph in chapter 35, when she debuts, but after getting beaten by yours truly, he fixed that gigantic mistake.
Last thing for today that I want to say is... THERE IS NEW SUPPORT FOR AKI AND ANNA'S DECKS! SO WHOOHOOO!
With that said, it's time we get over our lonely, but royal review!
ScalchopWarrior: To answer the question about why I choose Armityle Purple instead of Holactie... Well, I didn't think about it back then and I put Armityle because its card has a purple flame, just like how Slifer's Ra's and Obelisk's cards have a red, yellow and blue flame respectively. So, yeah. I'm just stupid.
Well, thanks to everyone for reading. Hope you leave an review, as we always love having some reviews to read. Before we end though, I have to say that I didn't keep count on the amount of cards shuffled by Eden Sina the Xyz Sorcerer. Although I was able to count 43 cards being shuffled, there's a chance that I missed a lot of them, so if you find a different result, I would like to hear it. Only keep in mind that Sina's effect doesn't shuffle banished cards.
With this, we are done!
Diabolic Tracer & Avice out!